Electric iron



Nov 27, l O. A. COLBY ELECTRIC IRON Filed March 10. 1922 29 Q WITNESSES. s .6 INVENTOR gi-ep me? mmYa 25 @mw/by 23 a@ a BY Patented Nov. 27, 1923..

.UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.A

ORA A. COLBY, OF IRWIN, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNORTO WESTINGHOUSE lll'JEt'JTIRIC & MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIAn ELECTRIC IRON.

lApplication led March 10, 1922. Serial No. 542,610.

6 State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvementv in Electric Irons, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates t electrically heated apparatus and particularly to electric irons l0 and it has for'one of its objects to provide a relatively simple and inexpensive unitary heating' element for an electric iron that may be easily and quickly assembled and disassembled and that may be quickly placed in and removed from its operative position in the iron.

Another object of my invention is to provide a unitary heating element so constructed as to reduce the amount of heat I that may be radiated or transmitted lto the handle member of the iron. n Another object of my invention is to provide, a terminal plate construction for they heating element that shall co-operate with an automatic circuit-interrupting device located in the terminal casing to insureits proper operation and that shall provide a relatively simple terminal construction for an electric iron.

In ractising my invention, I provide a sole p ate with integral lugs on its upper surface a-nd locate thereon a pairof refractory plate members, the lower one being provided with a plurality of resistor-containing grooves in its upper sur-face, and the upper one being provided with means for holding it in its proper operative position on the lower refractor member and acting as a cover member or the resistor. The lower refractory resistor-supporting member is constructed of a material which will easily conduct the heat from the resistor to the upper surface of the sole plate and the upper refractory plate is constructed of a refractory heat-insulating material to reduce the How of heat in an upward direction. I provide a cover member which is suitably secured against the top of the sole'plate and isprovided with resilient means for pressing the upper refractory plate against the lower plate and for pressing the lower plate into close engagement with the upper surface of the sole plate. I provide also the 'usual handle member suitably secured to the cover member.

I provide a plurality of terminal "plates which are removably mounted on the refractory resistor-supporting plate and I provide means thereon for electrically connecting thereto a circuit-interrupting deyice mounted in a metallic casing located at the back of the iron which casing is suitably secured against one of the handle straps.

In the single sheet of drawings,`

Figure 1 is a view, partly in side elevation and partly in section, ofan electric*l iron embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the refractory resistor-supporting member;

Fig. `3 is a top plan view of the refractory `cover plate, an

Fig. 4 is a view, in vertical lateral crosssection, through the two plates when in their proper operative relation to each other, on the line vIV-IV of Figs. 2 and 3.

An electric iron, designated generally by thenumeral 11, comprises a working ,member or sole plate 12which may be substantially triangular in outline and provided, on its upper surface, with an integral lug 13 located near the front point thereof and with a lug or a plurality of lugs 14 located at the rear edge thereof. yA metallic cover member 15, the bottom edge of which'has a contour substantially the same as that of the sole plate 12, is mounted on the sole plate and held thereagainst by a bolt 16. A handle member 17 .is securedon t-he cover member 15 by a front handle strap 18 and a. rear handle strap 19, the lower ends of which are suitably secured to the cover member by rivets 21.

A refractory resistor-supporting plate 22, somewhat smaller in lateral dimensions but of substantially the same outline as the plate 12, has its lower surface located in close operative engagement with the top surface of the `sole plate 12 and is prevented from either longitudinal or lateral movement relatively thereto by the integrall upstanding lugs 13 and 14. A plurality of grooves 23 and 24, which may be of any suitableextent and location, are provided in the upper surface of the member 22 to permit of 'loeating therein a resistor member .25 which, as illustrated more articular-ly 1n Fig. 2, may comprise a suitable resistor wire wound into helical form. In order to permlt of radiating at least a portion of the heat generated by the resistor 25 directly against the upper surface of the sole plate 12, I provide slots 26 in that portion of the resistor-sup porting'member 22 immediately below the 4grooves 23 and 24 and these slots. are of conducted tothe top of the sole plate 12.

A relatively thin refractory cover pla-te 27, of substantially the samecontour and outline dimensions as the member 22, is located on the upper surface of the plate 22 and is provided with integral, relatively small, de-

pending lug portions 28 and 29 which tit into a portion of the groove 24 to maintain the plate 27 in its proper operative position rela-l tively to the plate 22 and prevent lateral or longitudinal motion of the one relatively to the other. The location of the depending lugs 28 and 29 is, of course, such as to cooperate with, and fit into, parts of the groove 24 to attain the desired end. Each of the members 22 and 27 is provided with a substantially central opening 31 to permit of the bolt 16 extending therethrough into the sole plate 12 to hold the cover member 15 against the plate. The material of the cover plate 27 is such as to be substantially non-heatconducting in order to reduce the flow of heat upwardly from the resistor'member 25 to insure that thev cover of the iron and the handle member shall operate at as low a temperature as possible.

A plurality of terminal straps 32, of substantially U-shape, are removably mounted on the refractory resistor-supporting .member 22 at the rear end thereof by means of bolts 3.3 extending through openings 34 in the refractory plate, a nut 35 being operative to hold the bolt in position. If desired, that portion of each of the terminal straps engagmg the upper surface of the plate 22 may be provided with a down-turned end 36 which is located in corresponding depressions 37 in the upper surface of the plate to prevent any turning movement of the terminal straps relatively to the refractory plate. The upper refractory plate 27 is provided with an end recess 38 to permit of the terminal straps extending therethrough.

Any suitable or desired method may be employed to hold the heating element, comprising the lower refractory plate 22 the upper refracto cover plate 27 and the re- `sistor member ocated therebetween, in its proper operative position against the upper surface of the sole plate 12 but I prefer to use some resilient means, such as a plurality of spring members 39, one end of each of which is secured against the under side of the cover member 15 by rivets 21 with the other end operatively engaging the top refractory plate.` i

A metallic terminal casing 4comprising an inner portion 41 and an outer cover portion 42 is located at the rear of the iron, the inner part 41 being secured against the handle strap 19 by one or more machine screws 43. The outer or cover part 42 may be secured against the inner part by one or more screws 44 which may also be effective to securely clamp the entire terminal casing against the handle straps.

An automatic and manual circuit-interrupting member is located in the terminal casing and comprises a relatively small tubular member 45, of substantially Usshape, in which is located a quantity of mercury 46 sus` and which is provided with terminal leads 47 and 48 located at the bottom of one of the legs and near the top thereof to normally operatively. engage the mercury 46. The member 45 is preferably held in its proper operative position by means of the conducting leads 47 and 48, the lead 47 being secured, at its outer end, against the upper end of one of the terminal straps 32 by means of a screw 49. The outer end of the conducting leayd 48 is secured against the insulating plate 51 located on the inner surface of theinside of the terminal casing by a screw 52 which is effective, at the same time, to connect to the lead 48 one end of the lead 53 of the twin supply-circuit conductor 54. The end 55 of the second conductor is suitably connected to the other terminal strap 32 in a well known manner. If desired, a coil-spring member 56 Ymay be located around the portion of the supply-circuit conductor 54 immediately outside ofthe end of the terminal casing, to prevent undue kinking or bending of the conductors, in a manner well known in the art. The lower end of the circuit interrupting device 45 extends through an opening 57 in the'cover member 15 to permit of the mercury located at the bottom of the tube being vaporized when the temperature ofthe iron becomes unduly high, to thereby interrupt/the circuit through the resistor 25. The circuit-interrupting device hereinbefore described is claimed in my copending application, Serial No. 503,796, filed September 28, 1921.

The device embodying my invention thus i providesa relatively simple unitary heating element which may be manufactured at a relatively low cost, be easily and quickly assembled'and be easily and quickly placed in its operative position in the iron or removed therefrom. The means provided for locating the unitary heating element on the sole plate is e'ective, while, at the saine time,

not hindering either the mounting or dismounting of the heating element. The entire iron may be quickly disassembled and a damaged heating element replaced by a new one within avery short time.

Various modifications may be made in the device embodying my invention without del Aparting from the spirit and scope thereof and I desire that only such limitations-shall be placed thereon as are imposed by the prior art or are specifically set forth in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. An electric iron comprising a sole plate,`

a refractory resistor-supporting means on said sole plate, a resistor member located in said refractory means, a refractory heat-insulating plate located on 'said refractory resistor-supporting mea-ns and provided with integral means interfitting therewith for maintaining it in proper 4operative position relatively thereto, a cover member and resilient means on sa1d `cover member for' i said resistor-supporting member and having integral means for maintaining it in proper operative-position relatively thereto, termiminal plates for said resistor mounted on said resistor-supporting member at the rear end thereof, resilient means on said cover member for pressing said heat-insulating refractory plate against said resistor-supporting member and for pressing said resistorsupporting member against said sole plate and a single means for holding said cover member against said sole plate and for preventing lateral movement of either of said refractory plates relatively to said sole plate. 3. An electric ironcomprising a refractory heat conducting resistor supporting member, a resistor located removably thereon, and a refractory heat-insulating plate located on said resistor-supporting member and having integral means interfitting therewith for maintaining it in proper operative position thereon. v

4. In an electric iron, in combination, a

`unitary heating element comprising a refractory heat conducting resistor supportin bottom plate, a resistor member locate thereon, a refractory heat-insulatin top plate located on said bottom plate `ang having integral means interfitting therewith for maintaining it in proper operative position on said bottom plate and a plurality of terminal plates secured to said bottom refractory plate.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto ary, 1922.

' oRi A. ooiJBY.

70. subscribed my name this 20th day of F ebru- 

